Misato

Misato
2 Handy Road
#B1-24 The Cathay

176 Orchard Road
#01-33E The Centrepoint

https://www.facebook.com/MisatoSingapore/

Hoba Miso Beef (SGD $38.80)

Quality Japanese Fine Dining, Heartland Prices

(Ratings: On a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 = Worst and 10 = Best)
Overall: 9
Ambience & Setting: 9
Food & Beverage: 9
Service: 8
Value for Money: 10
Spent about SGD $27 per person.


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Opened in January 2015 by founder and owner chef Tony Young, Misato re-located from The Cathay to its current location in The Centrepoint in June 2017. Having largely flown under the radar all along, Misato remains a hidden gem of sorts. This is due in part to the eccentric, perfectionist founder of Misato, who insists on offering authentic, albeit eclectic, Japanese dishes, finely crafted yet defying easy categorisation.

Ambience at Misato is clean, casual, minimalist, yet beautiful. And it also defies good business logic. With an eye for pleasant design, much thought has gone into the small and cozy seating area. Warm overhead spotlights illuminate the casual modern wooden furnishings, while clean-looking, glossy artwork adorn the walls. Even more impressive, they've invested SGD $400,000 on cutlery and plating alone - the price of a small HDB flat in Singapore. The result; every dish is an attractive, eye-catching work of art that evokes wonder. Mad really, but beautiful.

Service at Misato is near excellent. Staff were friendly and accomodating. They introduced the nuances of each dish as it was served, displaying good product knowledge. Staff proactively and efficiently cleared away empty / dirty plates and tables. They even review the receipts and orders with you for accuracy! The only minor issue we faced; orders take awhile to be fulfilled - while acceptable for dishes as it's made to order, the drinks took longer than usual to be served. Generally, I find standards to be as good as most restaurants, they make the effort to ensure diners are happy.

Food at Misato is distinctly Japanese cuisine, but that's as far as categorisation goes. The small but focused menu is crafted in an eclectic manner, showcasing between 1 - 3 types of dishes per category, but with every single dish mastered to perfection. Each is made using authentic Japanese ingredients, in order to closely emulate the traditional taste. Portions are large and hearty. Yet, prices are very affordable despite the fine dining standards, and I daresay you'll be getting the most wallet-friendly meal of 2017 here. I hear that many dishes are sold at near cost price, with at least 1 dish going at below cost price. Budget about SGD $27 per person for a full meal here. Really mad.


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Misato Facade

Pagoda Decor

Decorative Light

Mountain Artwork

Decorative Japanese Print Plate

Chopsticks & Plate

Misato Menu - Main Course Ala Carte

Misato Menu - Main Course Set Meals

Misato Menu - Side Dishes

Misato Menu - Desserts

Misato Menu - Beverages

Us

They don't serve complimentary tap water here, so you'll have to either order the Bottled Mineral Water (SGD $3.80), or another beverage.

Bottled Mineral Water (SGD $3.80)

The Hot Matcha (SGD $6.50) is creamy and rich in texture, so comforting. Made with premium green tea powder, and served in a cup the size of a bowl, it has a deep vegetal grassy flavour. Those who like green tea will love this.

Hot Matcha (SGD $6.50)

The Hot Green Tea (SGD $3.90) features premium green tea leaves, served in the most pretty teacup and teapot imaginable. Has a delicate vegetal herbal flavour. Really lovely, and refills are complimentary.

Pouring

Hot Green Tea (SGD $3.90)

The Hand Made Gyoza (SGD $6.90 for 6 pieces) features juicy, piping hot parcels of minced chicken, chopped Japanese cabbage, and chopped scallions, wrapped in a medium thin, chewy dumpling wrapper, all freshly made daily. It's steamed then pan-fried together into a rectangular shape, and served upside down. Gently break through the crisp edges to separate the dumplings. Flavour is lightly savoury sweet, could be a little more salty for taste, but at least the light soy sauce on the side helps. Decent tasting appetizer with a unique presentation.

Hand Made Gyoza (SGD $6.90 for 6 pieces)

Hand Made Gyoza

Love the Cheese Korokke (SGD $7.90), with its crisp, golden brown bread crumb exterior, and soft, smooth, creamy mashed potato interior that has good sweet savoury flavour. Bite in, and the gooey mozzarella cheese slowly oozes out, lending a salty cheesy note to this delicious appetizer. Served in a cute basket plate.

Cheese Korokke (SGD $7.90)

Cheese Korokke

The Premium Miso Soup (SGD $3.50) has bold, robust, savoury flavours with a hint of sweet salty vegetal on the end. Made with quality miso paste and dashi / seaweed stock, it's garnished with seaweed and silken tofu beancurd cubes. Warming and so delightful to drink.

Premium Miso Soup (SGD $3.50)

Premium Miso Soup

The Chawanmushi (SGD $4.90) here is of good quality. The wobbly soft steamed egg custard is infused with dashi / seaweed stock, and is light and smooth in texture, with a delicate sweet eggy vegetal flavour. It's studded with a single piece of the following; earthy shiitake mushroom, savoury chicken chunk, tender crab stick meat, and crunchy spring onion. Lovely and comforting soul food.

Chawanmushi (SGD $4.90)

Chawanmushi

The Tamagoyaki (SGD $5.50) is served in a vibrant aquamarine crescent-shaped bowl. The 3 pieces of rolled pan-fried Japanese egg omelette have a soft, spongy, bouncy texture, with a good sweet eggy flavour. Nice.

Tamagoyaki (SGD $5.50)

Tamagoyaki

The Ebi Donburi (SGD $15.90) is a large serving that evokes awe with its towering presentation. A bed of fluffy Japanese white rice, seasoned with a delicate seafood broth, coated with fluffy egg omelette, earthy seaweed, crunchy spring onions, and a trio of briny tobiko / flying fish roe, in orange, green, and black hues. The star is the duo of giant live tiger prawns, incredibly fresh and meaty sweet savoury in flavour, lightly coated in fresh panko bread crumbs, gently deep-fried till a crisp golden brown. Bite in and you get the natural juicy bouncy textures of the prawn. Served with a side of underwhelming daikon radish. Overall, a decent dish, but compared to everything else here, this was the weakest main course we had.

Ebi Donburi (SGD $15.90)

Ebi Donburi

The Oyakodon (SGD $13.90) stood out the minute it was served, with the cute heart-shaped, briny orange tobiko / flying fish roe, nestled on the bed of fluffy Japanese white rice which was seasoned with a delicate seafood broth. Surrounded by fluffy egg omelette, a runny soft boiled egg, earthy seaweed, briny green tobiko / flying fish roe, chunks of chicken, and briny salty ikura / salmon roe. While the side of daikon radish was underwhelming, the donburi / rice bowl itself is better than elsewhere, the liberal amount of broth and egg has soaked into the white rice, making it so flavourful. I only wish the chicken had more flavour, as it was flat on the palate, but as is, this rendition stands out amongst its competitors. Worth ordering!

Oyakodon (SGD $13.90)

Oyakodon

The Okonomiyaki (SGD $14.90) is very good, I've only had one other version in Singapore that has a similar high quality. The large, generous portion of Japanese pancake is filled with shredded Japanese cabbage and mountain yam, both imported from Japan. Garnished with egg, pork belly, katsuobushi / bonito fish flakes, okonomiyaki sauce, and spring onions. Nicely savoury sweet salty vegetal in flavour, with textures of soft, chewy, and crunchy. Highly recommended!

Okonomiyaki (SGD $14.90)

Okonomiyaki

The Hoba Miso Beef (SGD $38.80) is an off-menu item. And while all other dishes are sold at near cost price, this is the 1 item that goes for below cost price. And it's of high quality, completely delicious. Originating from Takayama city in Gifu prefecture, Japan, the dish is a style of cooking where food, seasoned with miso paste, is grilled on a magnolia leaf over a charcoal-filled, clay stove known as shichirin. A rare dish which would possibly cost more than SGD $80 in a fine dining Japanese restaurant elsewhere, going for less than half the price here.

Here, the main ingredient is beef. To be precise, 100g of A5 ohmi wagyu beef sirloin steak, tender, juicy, savoury salty, and delicious. Almost melts away in the mouth. The miso paste is special too, a rich, mildly salty, semi-chunky paste with malted grains of white rice or barley, known as moromi miso. Served with tender earthy mushrooms (shiitake, oyster), crunchy leeks, wobbly soft Japanese tofu beancurd, fragrant black sesame infused tofu beancurd, and chewy Japanese green ginkgo nuts. Highly recommended!

Hoba Miso Beef (SGD $38.80)

Hoba Miso Beef

Hoba Miso Beef

Hoba Miso Beef

Hoba Miso Beef

The Matcha Bavarois (SGD $7.80) is the most playful, fun dessert ever, because it's so wobbly! Bold notes of robust green tea flavour, earthy vegetal sweet in taste, with a smooth, rich, wobbly soft texture. A beautiful fusion marriage of French bavarois technique, with premium Japanese green tea powder. Wobbly!

Matcha Bavarois (SGD $7.80)

Matcha Bavarois

The signature dessert of Sanshoku Warabi Mochi (SGD $8.80) was served in an elegant, crescent-shaped plate. Featuring a trio of different flavoured mochi / glutinous rice cake - nutty goma / black sesame, earthy kinako / roasted soy bean flour, and fragrant matcha. Freshly hand made daily, taking up to 2 hours per batch, each mochi / glutinous rice cake has a sticky, gelatinous texture that almost melts away in the mouth. It's served with brown sugar syrup on the side, within an elegant, pretty, and shiny apple-shaped metallic container. Drizzle some of the syrup to change the overall flavour, giving this dessert a floral sweet note. Highly recommended!

Sanshoku Warabi Mochi (SGD $8.80)

Sanshoku Warabi Mochi

The Kuzukiri (SGD $8.80) is a rare dessert in Singapore. It comprises chilled strands of arrowroot noodles, flat and thick in size, slippery and gelatinous in texture, with a delicate earthy starchy flavour. While it can be eaten on its own, I find it tastier when dipped into the kuromitsu / black honey sugar syrup on the side, which gives it a floral sweet flavour. Good to try just for the novelty alone, though it's decently tasty. Worth ordering!

Kuzukiri (SGD $8.80)

Kuzukiri

Kuzukiri, photo credits: Purple Taste

Love the presentation of the Matcha Zenzai Mochi (SGD $7.80), with its bowl resembling a mushroom, and the adorable piggy chopstick holders. The actual dessert features a large, grilled mochi / glutinous rice cake, sticky and gelatinous in texture, with a sweet smoky flavour from the caramelised segments. It's served in an earthy sweet soup / broth of Hokkaido red beans and matcha, which is thick and rich in texture. We were divided over this, some of us liked the contrast of smoky and sweet flavour, while the others didn't. I personally felt it looks better than it tastes, and that it was the weakest dessert we tried here.

Matcha Zenzai Mochi (SGD $7.80)

Matcha Zenzai Mochi

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